It's Wednesday... and it's New Years Eve... who's ready for #HorrorWritersChat, the crossing the threshold edition?

Happy New Year's Eve! #newyearseve #happynewyear #winter #5amwritersclub

Read my exclusive interview with John A. Russo, who co-wrote NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD with George Romero. Live at The Horror Zine. www.thehorrorzine.com/Special/John... #johnarusso #nightofthelivingdead #anikydwolf #caspervandien #spawnofthelivingdead #horror #horrormovies #5amwritersclub

It's New Year's Eve, everyone. Good riddance, 2025. May 2026 not be as much of a train wreck. #newyearseve #happynewyear #writestuff #5amwritersclub

Thanks for another great #WriteStuff chat! Have a very Happy New Year, everyone. I'm glad 2025 is almost over. May 2026 NOT be a train wreck! Please? Pretty please? With a cherry on top?

#WriteStuff A6: I don't recall offhand any I've written since they tend for me to bog down the plot. Some good examples I've seen are LITTLE BIG MAN & SUNSET BOULEVARD. One short story that used flashbacks well is THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY. Talk about fear of aging!

#WriteStuff A4: As I age as a woman I have become invisible. It's a big change from when I was younger & I used to turn heads. The invisibility came as a disappointing but useful shock. That could help a senior character get away with stuff - including murder - since no one pays attention to her.

#WriteStuff A5: Madeleine Matlock (Kathy Bates) on the TV show MATLOCK. Maddie is pissed at the company she works for for hiding a study that would have destroyed an opioid company that she holds responsible for the overdose death of her daughter. She's vibrant, angry, & smart. Not a stereotype.

#WriteStuff A4: Writing about seniors now that I am one is much different than what I expected it to be when I was younger. Seniors (esp. women) aren't always depicted in a positive, life-affirming fashion. I think it's due to fear of aging and death and not really understanding how we age.

#WriteStuff A3: I began creating senior characters when I became one. :) While I've written them in the past, they were based on seniors I knew, not on my own experiences. Now, adding my own fears, aches, pains, etc. only enhances the stories and makes them feel more real.

#WriteStuff A2: My senior character in my horror story YOU REALLY DON'T WANT TO DO THAT has severe arthritis, stomach cancer, and more. The demon Belphegor jumps into him without knowing all this. He wants OUT. The pain is incredible but things don't exactly turn out well. Joke's on him. LOL

Hi, #WriteStuff! I'm Trish Wilson, Media Director for The Horror Zine. My interview with John A. Russo, Ani Kyd Wolf, & Casper Van Dien is live at THZ. Russo co-wrote NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD with George Romero. The others co-wrote/directed and star in SPAWN OF THE LIVING DEAD, coming in 2026.

Hey Bluesky #writers, spread the word... #WriteStuff leads a #WritingCommunity chat tomorrow at 9:00 ET|6:00 PT - join us! Our topic will be: Happy Old Year

In the Jan 2026 issue: my exclusive interview with "Night of the Living Dead" co-creator John A. Russo and more. Also fiction by Graham Masterton. www.thehorrorzine.com #thehorrorzine #writingcommunity #horrorcommunity #booksky #5amwritersclub #nightofthelivingdead #grahammasterton #trishwilson

Merry Christmas, everyone! #Christmas #holiday #santaclaus #winter #snow #5amwritersclub

#HorrorWritersChat - I wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, Blessed Yule, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Hanukkah! I'm going to bake some gingersnaps now. Must. Have. More. Christmas. Cookies. Take care, everyone. Be good or Jólakötturninn will eat you! Don't mess with the Yule Cat. Meow!

#HorrorWritersChat Splatterpunk founder John Skipp has new commentary out about the segment THIS MEANS WAR from the anthology film TALES OF HALLOWEEN. Check out the commentary! I interviewed Skipp for The Horror Zine and The Horror Tree. He's a righteous dude. www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUU3...

Thanks for a great #HorrorWritersChat, Mary! My interview with John Russo, Ani Kyd Wolf, and Casper Van Dien goes live on the 27th at The Horror Zine. Russo co-wrote NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD with George Romero. This is a fun and informative interview. My last for the year. More in the next post. :)

#HorrorWritersChat I refuse to be Whammed! I did hear Mariah Carey's Christmas horror & quickly turned off the radio. Washed out my ears with salt. LOL Last Christmas I gave you my heart which you put in a box and gave to my stepmonster, the Wicked Queen. Fooled her. It was a boar's heart. ❤️‍🔥

#HorrorWritersChat - Part 2 I sadly haven't read many Christmas horror stories. That said, I love Christmas horror movies. My favorite story/movie is RARE EXPORTS: A CHRISTMAS TALE. Fantastic movie. Finnish with English subtitles. If you haven't see it, watch it. Now. You won't be sorry.

#HorrorWritersChat I've done this twice in my own Christmas horror stories. SNOW JOB - Scents of pine, chocolate, and mint. A snow globe. A huge family fight. LOL BETTER WATCH OUT BETTER NOT CRY - hot toddy, a very BIG cat, and gingersnaps. As far as the BIG cat goes, think Icelandic folklore. :)

#HorrorWritersChat Howdy all! Michelle here, writer of body horror, comedy horror, and creature features. I actually am not big on the holidays 😅. Retail ruined it for me. Best I can do is a movie rec! Violent Night is such a fun time. Highly recommend.

I'm Rebecca. One of my subgenres is horror Christmas short stories and Christmas thrillers and mysteries. My favorite is A Christmas Story where the rich miser is haunted until he mends his ways. We could use more of that. (favorite movie version: from the Muppets) #horrorwriterschat

Hi, #HorrorWritersChat! I'm J.L, and I write Spooky books for kids! I don't read must holiday horror, but I DID just finish Dead Rising 4, which takes place between Black Friday and Xmas!

Hoi! I'm J. Neira, I write mostly in the cozy & bubblegum horror subgenres, often they're that & also YA. Unfortunately I'm drawing a blank when thinking of horror set during this holiday I enjoy. Maybe Krampus? 😭 #HorrorWritersChat

The protagonist of my first novel AWOO is a werewolf astronaut. I suppose he'd like a nice telescope? Or a chew toy? Or a telescope chew toy? I dunno. #horrorwriterschat

Hi. I'm Anna. I write cosmic and eco-horrot. I have lately really enjoyed The Hollow Rooms by Ian Harris, adapted for audio by @hauntedukfiction.bsky.social recently. Set on Christmas Eve and some very nice, cheeky winks at The Shining. #HorrorWritersChat

#HorrorWritersChat Hi I'm HD Beird HD stands for "Hurgh, Damnit" because screw 2025 I write sci-fi horror mixed with erotica and mystery My choice Christmas horror is Batman Returns Sums up Christmas; folks pretending to be who they aren't and a perverted undercurrent motivating everyone

#HorrorWritersChat I'd give Ethan Harris (from TRAILER TRASH ZOMBIES) a gift of prime pseudomeat. Eating human meat is illegal so it's made in a lab. It's derived from vegetarians so the meat is especially supple and sweet. He'd be beside himself since it's expensive. He can't afford it.

#HorrorWritersChat I'm Trish Wilson, Media Director for The Horror Zine. I write quiet horror & horror comedy. Telling ghost stories on Christmas Eve is traditional so I recommend M. R. James' stories, including "Oh, Whistle & I'll Come To You, My Lad". www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RtI...

Here's another fantastic Christmas commercial, also from Sainsbury's. It's about the WWI Christmas Armistice. www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWF2... #christmas #WWI #christmasarmistice #christmaseve #history

This commercial is tied with the Sainsbury Mog commercial for my favorite commercial. Meow! #cravendale #sainsbury #mog #cats #catswiththumbs #milk www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmJh...

My favorite commercial happens to be a Christmas commercial. I never cry at movies and such, but by the end of this I was happily bawling. Merry Christmas Eve, everyone! #sainsbury #commercials #mog #cats #christmas #christmaseve www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuRn...

Lobster Doug saves Christmas! Gotta have a Lobster Doug video for Christmas Eve. It makes sense if you don't think about it. www.youtube.com/shorts/JjDjw... #lobsterdoug #dougandthebusinesscats #drennondavis #christmaseve #christmas #cats

#christmas #jolakotturinn #yulecat #yule #iceland #christmaseve #holiday #winter

Merry Christmas Eve, everyone! Santa and Krampus aren't the only Christmas figures. Don't forget Grýla, the Yule lads, and the Yule Cat of Icelandic folklore. #5amwritersclub #christmaseve #christmas #iceland #gryla #yulecats #yulelads #yule #krampus #santa

#WriteStuff A6 While Shirley Jackson's "The Summer People" is a fine short story, I think it would work if expanded into a novel. Go into more detail (with more examples!) of the vacationing couple getting a dose of unpleasant reality when they stay on vacation past the summer season. :)

#WriteStuff A5 I can't recall one offhand, but I think Stephen King's later novels have unnecessary filler. They're much longer than his earlier ones. Those earlier novels are much tighter and they don't get dragged down.

#WriteStuff A4 I've written flash fiction plenty of times. It's very hard, but I enjoy it. I've written it for Crystal Lake Publishing's Shallow Waters monthly flash fiction calls. Sometimes I make the cut, and I like that. I've written one drabble. Haven't subbed it anywhere yet.

#WriteStuff A3 I have several - Shirley Jackson, Joe R. Lansdale, and Ray Bradbury are examples.

#WriteStuff A2 I think short stories are harder to write than longer ones because you can't waste words. You must get to the point right away and grab the reader within the first sentence/paragraph. It can be hard to be so concise.

#WriteStuff A1 Yes! I've written romance, erotica, and horror short stories. I've also written flash fiction.

Splatterpunk founder John Skipp has new commentary out about the segment THIS MEANS WAR from the anthology film TALES OF HALLOWEEN. Check out the commentary! www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUU3... #JohnSkipp #horror #quiethorror #loudhorror #5amwritersclub #talesofhalloween #thismeanswar #horrormovies

Horror Writers, 'Tis the season to join #HorrorWritersChat Bring your own snacks, beverages and festive horror brain for an hour of questions, prompts, and chat about writing horror. Wednesday 24 December at 7 pm (GMT - UK time) Hosted this week by @marywyrd.bsky.social #HorrorSky #amwriting

Blessed Yule and happy first day of winter solstice!

Thank you to everyone who has already submitted to the HorrorWritersChat anthology! It's exciting and a little overwhelming to see such enthusiasm in honouring MG Mason like this

#HorrorWritersChat My interview with Bruce Campbell (Groovy!) is at The Horror Zine. www.thehorrorzine.com/Special/Bruc... I'm also baking apple turnovers right now. The recipe is at Morselship on Facebook. It's a group of dessert recipes. Fb is good for something! Here's a pic from the group:

#HorrorWritersChat It's you. The real you. Who you've always been. A thought claws and gnashes into your mind "My sins take shape. My sins gain sight. They turn towards me," ... and gaze at me with wild eyes full of sorrow, abandonment, and tears. They say: "I am that which loves."

#HorrorWritersChat I must admit regret/redemption are hard concepts for me to write about. In order to get there, my characters must make themselves vulnerable & they are loathe to do that due to past trauma and poor treatment by those they loved & trusted. Hence. the rage & very creative revenge.